


cause we break down just a little

by perfectlyrose



Category: Buzzfeed Unsolved (Web Series)
Genre: Ambiguous Relationships, Cuddling & Snuggling, Developing Relationship, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Episode: s02e04 The Haunted Halls Of Waverly Hills Hospital, Gen, M/M, as in this can be read romantically or platonically depending on what you prefer, post-episode
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-08-08
Updated: 2019-08-08
Packaged: 2020-08-12 04:22:26
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,038
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20157649
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/perfectlyrose/pseuds/perfectlyrose
Summary: Shane’s fidgety the whole way back to the hotel. More so than usual. Ryan watches his long fingers tap nonsense rhythms against his thigh and notes the tension in his shoulders. He’s pretty sure Shane’s worked up about something, but Ryan’s running on maybe ten minutes of sleep and an excess of adrenaline himself, so he stays quiet.Ryan notices Shane's acting off after they leave Waverly Hills Sanatorium and tries to get to the bottom of what's wrong.





	cause we break down just a little

**Author's Note:**

  * For [sequence_fairy](https://archiveofourown.org/users/sequence_fairy/gifts).

> for jess who was lamenting the lack of post waverly fics after watching the almost 70th episode and seeing the bit where shane got freaked out ♥

Shane’s fidgety the whole way back to the hotel. More so than usual. Ryan watches his long fingers tap nonsense rhythms against his thigh and notes the tension in his shoulders. He’s pretty sure Shane’s worked up about something, but Ryan’s running on maybe ten minutes of sleep and an excess of adrenaline himself, so he stays quiet.

“You two are unusually quiet,” Devon says from the front seat.

“Someone barely let me get any sleep,” Shane snarks. His index finger taps four times in a row rapidfire before he taps his fingers in order.

“Yeah, you know how Shane gets grumpy without his beauty sleep,” Ryan puts in.

Thankfully no one says anything about how they’re usually a little punchier after an overnight, glad to be out of whatever creepy as fuck and musty place they slept in.

“Sure, laugh it up, Bergara. You’re the one without any beauty sleep on board.”

“Cameras are off so doesn’t matter any more.”

Ryan expects something snippy in response about everyone else still having to see his face in person, but Shane just goes back to staring out the window. 

They finally pull into the hotel parking lot and room keys are pressed into their hands. Someone reminds them that their flight out is early tomorrow morning and gently razzes them that they better be functioning humans by then. Ryan flips them off as he makes for the elevators.

“Can’t wait to see an actual mattress,” Shane mumbles as they shuffle into the elevator.

Ryan presses the button for their floor and watches the numbers start to tick up. “Just see?”

“Going to faceplant onto it. See it up close and personal.”

Ryan chuckles and the elevator dings as it stops at the fourth floor. “I just can’t wait to get some sleep somewhere  _ not _ haunted.”

Shane’s silence can almost be overlooked as he fights with the card reader on their room door.

Almost.

There’s no quip about Waverly Hills not actually being haunted or the possibility that this Best Western is as likely to house ghosts as the sanatorium. Shane’s shoulders tighten again and he finally gets the keycard to work and pushes into the room.

“Shane?”

“I’m fine,” he says before faceplanting on the nearest bed, as promised, with zero regard to the fact that he’s still wearing both glasses and shoes.

Ryan considers his options for a moment and then sits on the edge of Shane’s bed instead of beelining for his own. “Sure about that, big guy? You’re not taking any of the normal openings to give me shit for being scared out of my mind back there.”

Shane mutters something but since his face is currently mashed into the hotel duvet, it’s unintelligible.

“Wanna try that again?”

Shane turns his head to the side, away from Ryan. “Place freaked me out.”

Shock shoots through Ryan at that admission. “Really?”

“Don’t rub it in,” Shane says. “I’m just going to sleep it off and pretend it never happened.”

“Dude, I was about two seconds away from running out of that fucking place screaming at any given moment. I’m not going to make fun of you for getting a bit freaked out by it.”

Shane is silent for a moment. He shifts to cross his arms under his head, finally turning his face towards Ryan. His glasses are askew and pressing into the side of his face. It’s oddly charming. “How do you handle this all the time? The… the fear.”

Ryan sucks in a breath.

“I just… we were down in the body chute and I heard something weird and I booked it without even thinking. It was just a moment of pure fear and if that’s how you feel all the times I make you stay in the dark or whatever—”

“I always know you’re there,” Ryan interrupts. He hesitates before reaching out to rest his hand on Shane’s shoulder. “You’re always there, Shane. I know if things get too much for me, you’ll get me out of there and won’t make fun of me until I’m feeling better.”

“But—”

“But nothing,” Ryan says firmly. “I know what I’m getting into whenever we go somewhere. I know how fucking scared I’m likely to be. You’re there with your skepticism and really bad jokes—”

“My jokes are a fucking delight, Bergara. I’m hilarious.”

“Keep telling yourself that, Madej.”

“I will, thank you.”

He sounds closer to his normal self and something in Ryan relaxes. “So, you good?” He asks through a yawn.

“I will be after I commune with this mattress,” Shane says.

“Okay.” Ryan makes to move off the bed but is stopped by Shane reaching out and grabbing his wrist. “Shane?”

“Stay here? Just for another minute?” His voice is small and Ryan has zero chance of saying no to him.

“Course,” he says. He kicks his shoes off before moving further onto the bed, leaning up on the excess of pillows propped against the headboard. “Take your shoes off before you fall asleep, you heathen.”

Shane groans and kicks his feet ineffectively where they’re hanging over the end of the bed. He does eventually get his shoes off and Ryan steals his glasses and puts them on the nightstand. Shane wiggles up the bed a little until he finds a pillow. He wedges it under his face and drapes an arm over Ryan’s waist like he needs to know that he’s there.

Ryan smiles and lets himself thread his fingers through Shane’s hair, petting lightly as Shane’s breathing evens out — always one to fall asleep quickly no matter the circumstances. Ryan focuses on the relaxed sprawl of Shane next to him and lingers there in the quiet space of early morning in mediocre hotel room. He’ll edit out whatever footage there is of Shane freaking out. It’d be good for views, probably, their unflappable skeptic finally reacting to one of the creepy locales, but it’s not worth the discomfort it’d cause Shane.

Ryan takes a deep breath and decides to stay just one more minute to make sure Shane’s sleeping soundly before slipping over to the other bed to catch some sleep himself.

He’s out before he can even think about moving again.


End file.
